


Your Words Mean Nothing (But They Hurt)

by Child_Of_Wonderland



Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo (Shadowhunters/The Mortal Instruments) [18]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alec Lightwood Deserves Nice Things, Alec Lightwood Loves Magnus Bane, BAMF Magnus Bane, Bad Parent Maryse Lightwood, Bad Parent Robert Lightwood, Insecure Alec Lightwood, M/M, Magnus Bane Loves Alec Lightwood, Protective Magnus Bane
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-03
Updated: 2019-08-03
Packaged: 2020-07-29 18:50:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20087050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Child_Of_Wonderland/pseuds/Child_Of_Wonderland
Summary: Ever since the failed wedding between Alec and Lydia, Maryse and Robert stopped holding back their disappointment for Alec. Magnus isn't going to let them hurt Alec anymore.





	Your Words Mean Nothing (But They Hurt)

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Confrontation

Alec wasn’t sure how his parents would react the next time he saw them after his failed attempt at a wedding. After the initial shock and anger, his parents had disappeared off to Idris without another word and Alec was left alone with nothing but hatred from his parents. Magnus has been great, taking him halfway across the world for a sweet date or getting extremely expensive reservations at a restaurant just to surprise him after work one day. The way Magnus cared and loved him made it easy for Alec to forget all the words his parents had hurled his way at the end of his failed wedding. Alec wasn’t entirely sure, however, if he was really going to be able to make it through their upcoming visit to New York. It had only taken the information of their return to send all the disappointment and hatred come pouring back into his mind.

“Alexander?” Magnus calls, his voice rough with sleep as he steps out onto the balcony to find the shadowhunter leaning against the railing. Alec’s looking up towards the stars and doesn’t turn around when Magnus moves to step up beside him. Alec glances at him as soon as the warlock leans against the railing beside him and Magnus catches the sad look in the shadowhunter’s eyes. 

“I didn’t wake you did I?” Alec asks softly as he turns back to the stars. Magnus follows his gaze, leaning his head against Alec’s upper arm and shakes his head.

“Not at all. I guess I just can’t sleep without you.” Magnus flirts a bit and he catches the slight smile that pulls at Alec’s lips. Magnus can’t help the smile that covers his face whenever he catches the shy smile that Alec is giving him.

“I’m sorry.” Alec mumbles out as he leans against Magnus’s shoulder, keeping his eyes on the warlock beside him now. Magnus shakes his head and turns so he’s facing Alec, wrapping his arms around Alec’s waist.

“You’re worried about your parents?” Magnus asks softly, pulling Alec towards the couch that Magnus had put out on the balcony. Alec nods his head, sliding down against the backboard until his head is resting against the back of the couch. Magnus reaches his hand over, running it through Alec’s hair as the shadowhunter relaxes against him.

“Come back to bed darling, we can talk more tomorrow.” Magnus offers and Alec nods against his hand, standing up slowly. He follows Magnus back through the loft and as soon as they enter the bedroom, Alec falls face first onto the bed with a groan. Magnus chuckles softly, tugging the shadowhunter up towards the pillows and holds him close until the two of them start to drift off.

***

Alec tugs at the end of his shirt, trying to take a deep breath in order to calm himself as he waits for his parents to appear in the ops center. He’s standing beside Jace, pretending to be busy with the preparations for an upcoming downworlder cabinet meeting but both of them know that Alec is not paying attention at all. The sounds of a portal make Alec tense and he tries not to let the panic seize all of his thoughts. Jace nods to him and the two of them turn to face their parents, who are standing at the entrance of the Institute with a disgusted look on their face as soon as they spot Alec.

“Mother. Father.” Alec greets, nodding his head at them in respect while Jace stands to his side and waits for his brother to finish his own greetings.

“Jace!” Maryse greets happily, giving the boy a maternal smile before sneer at Alec, “Alexander.” Her tone of voice changes completely and Alec tries to not flinch away at the hostility of his parents. Jace looks at them with a disappointed expression before turning to Alec. The two of them have a silent conversation before Jace is nodding and stepping away, going back to the arrangements for the cabinet meeting. Alec motions for his parents to follow him, leading them down the hallway and into his office. His desk is covered in mission reports that still require his signature and he gets a look filled with disappointment from Robert at the sight.

“What are you two doing here?” Alec asks, attempting to keep his voice level and calm as he turns to face his disapproving parents. Robert glances sideways at the stack of paper before turning back to Alec with a sneer.

“Just wanted to see if you’re running our Institute.” Robert looks at him as if he’s tasted something disgusting, his nose is scrunched up and his eyes are filled with disgust. Alec tenses and sets his jaw as he meets his parents eyes, crossing his rune-covered arms over his chest. 

“I’m running it perfectly fine.” Alec insists, his arms tightening around his chest and he gives his parents a heated look. Maryse scoffs, shaking her head before crossing her own arms and facing Alec with a harsh, uncaring look.

“This Institute is going downhill Alexander!” Maryse snaps, her voice harsh enough to cause Alec to flinch back away from his parents, “Ever since you started this...this fling with that warlock, all you have done is let downworlders in! You have completely ruined our family name, you’re nothing but a disappointment.” She levels Alec with a glare and Robert crosses his own arms, shaking his head at their eldest son. Alec takes a steadying breath, clenching his hands into fists in an attempt to stop them from shaking. 

“What was the point of you becoming head if you’re just going to ruin the shadowhunters here? That warlock is using you, you know that right? He just wants to get the downworlders to take over and he went for the weakest link.” Robert sneers and Alec takes a shaky breath before Robert continues, “We should have known you’d be the weakest link, this is why Jace should have stayed as the head. You’re ruining the Lightwood legacy, a legacy we worked so hard to perfect and keep pure!” Robert’s red in the face and seething, he looks ready to snap. His hands are clenched into firsts and despite being shorter than his eldest son, Alec can’t help but feel extremely tiny and insignificant. It feels like he can’t breath but he tries to keep his face steady and impassive. His heart is beating against his chest rapidly and every breath hurts his chest but he knows that any sign of weakness will just send his parents into a further tirade.

“We need help from the downworlders. No where in the Accords does it say that we can’t have the downworlders on our side. We all have a common enemy right now, Valentine is not only attempting to wipe them out but most of us as well. We’re stronger together than apart.” Alec declares, keeping his head high as he tries to prevent his parents words from getting to him. He knows that his parents can’t know that what they’re saying is hurting, it’ll just end up with them using it more and more often against him. The words will just become another weapon in their arsenal against him.

“The downworlders are just here to destroy us. Magnus is using you, you’ll figure it out sooner or later. And when you do, don’t come crying to us.” Maryse hisses before turning on her heel and heading out the door, “We’ll talk to Jace, he deserves to be the head.” Robert slams the door shut and Alec sighs, leaning against his desk with a heavy breath. The silence is deafening and despite the fact that what they had said is relatively unharmful, he feels like everything is shattering slightly. Despite that they just said the normal stuff he is use to hearing, it’s all the things that they didn’t say that has Alec unable to breath with a hammering heart. He reaches for his phone hesitantly, staring at Magnus’s contact information for a few seconds longer than he should have to. He doesn’t know what to do as the phone rings and he chooses to collapse on the couch of his office, burying his head in his hands as he holds the phone against his ear and shoulder.

“Alexander!” Magnus’s cheerful voice comes through the phone and Alec feels better almost instantly. Just getting to hear Magnus’s voice makes him feel ten times better but it doesn’t help the harsh words that his parents had just finished hurling his way. Alec can’t bring himself to answer Magnus, instead burying his head further into his hands as he tries to think of what he should say to the warlock. His parents had just torn him a new one, not just because of who he was but also because he was with someone that his parents didn’t deem appropriate and Alec wasn’t sure how Magnus would react to hearing that. He doesn’t want to hurt Magnus anymore than he already has so he stays silent.

“Alexander darling?” Magnus calls again, his voice considerably more worried this time and Alec makes a small sound that even he knows makes him sound like a wounded puppy. 

“Mom and dad.” Alec whispers into the phone, unable to say much more than that but Magnus seems to understand because he sucks in a breath before falling back to silence. He’s seemingly waiting for Alec to continue speaking but when he doesn’t, Magnus takes over and starts speaking.

“Rough return?” Magnus asks softly and when Alec hums in agreement, he sighs again before continuing, “Anything I can do from my end?” He sounds so hopeful and Alec can’t bear to tell him that there’s not much he can do without physically being there.

“Can you come over for lunch?” Alec whispers into the phone and he hears a flipping of pages before Magnus is humming, speaking under his breath.

“I can make that work.” Magnus answers and Alec can practically feel the way Magnus smiles brightly. Alec sighs in relief, sinking into the cushions of the couch more and he rests his elbows on his knees.

“I’ll be there in a few minutes? How does…” Magnus pauses to think before chuckling softly to himself, “Nasi Uduk? I know a great place where I can get some.” Magnus seems almost hopeful and it practically warms Alec’s heart.

“That sounds wonderful.” Alec sighs in happiness and he can imagine the way Magnus is smiling towards the phone.

“I’m outside, I’ll see you soon my dear.” Magnus promises before hanging up, leaving Alec with a beeping phone in between his ear and shoulder. Alec feels like he can breathe a little easier and he just can’t wait until Magnus gets here. He prays to the Angel that Magnus won’t run into his parents and when Magnus enters his office, Alec can tell that he was lucky. Magnus still has a smile firmly in place and a bag of food held loosely in his right hand. 

“Alexander!” Magnus greets, waving his hand behind him to shut the door and reaching forward to wrap his arms around Alec’s shoulders. The bag of food swings into Alec’s back and the shadowhunter can’t help but relax against the warlock. Magnus presses a kiss to Alec’s hair before pulling back and grabbing Alec’s chin to make the shadowhunter look up at him.

“I’m sorry about your parents my dear.” Magnus whispers and Alec shrugs his shoulders before rising to his feet to join Magnus at the table that had just appeared in the office.

“It’s not your fault Magnus.” Alec dismisses with a wave of his hand and Magnus sighs, nodding his head in understanding. Magnus sets a meal in front of him and Alec can’t help but smile down at the dish before continuing to talk, “It’s just their usual stuff, I’m a disappointment, I’m not worthy of being head, blame me for the bad reputation on the Lightwood name when they’re the ones who were circle members. All the normal stuff that shouldn’t bother me anymore.” Alec sighs and shakes his head slightly, choosing to dig into the food instead of think more on the topic of his parents.

“Darling, just because it’s normal does not mean that it shouldn’t bother you.” Magnus reassures, reaching over to squeeze Alec’s hand as the two of them relax to enjoy their meal. Magnus reaches his leg forward, hooking his ankle around Alec’s leg and smiling up at the younger shadowhunter. Alec knows his cheeks are slightly rosy and he glances down at the table before sending a bashful smile towards Magnus. The warlock laughs softly, cupping Alec’s cheek and leaning over to press a kiss the man’s lips. The sound of the door opening spurs them both out of their little bubble. Maryse is standing in the doorway, spotting the two of them almost immediately and her gaze hardens within a single instant. Jace is trailing behind her, giving her an angry look before catching sight of Magnus and Alec. Magnus almost wants to laugh at the way Jace’s eyes go comically large at the sight of the couple but he schools his expression when he hears Alec suck in a breath and go tense beside Magnus. He rises to his feet, schooling his expression to look the perfect picture of a leader.

“Is something wrong?” He asks, stationing himself in front of the sitting Magnus and crosses his arms protectively over his chest. Maryse is glaring at him with a disgusted look and Jace is looking at him with wide, apologetic eyes. Magnus rises to his feet as well, waving his hand in order to get rid of the food behind them before wrapping an arm around Alec’s waist. 

“This is what you use the office for? Your little dates with this...this  _ downworlder _ ?” Maryse scoffs at Alec before turning to Magnus with a disgusted look, “You’re disgusting, using my family that way!” She looks as if she’s going to say more but Magnus waves his hand, effectively shutting her mouth as he stalks forward.

“You have the audacity to yell at me?” Magnus looks at the Lightwood mother in shock before speaking again, “You come in here, to your son’s office and have the audacity to not only yell at his boyfriend but also at him? You act like you’re just concerned for him and if you were, maybe I’d like you, but no. All you care about is yourself! I’m done letting you hurt not only Alec but his siblings as well. You say another word that hurts any of them, you’ll have to deal with me.” Magnus holds his head high and levels Maryse with a harsh, demanding look. Maryse looks at him with a rude look before shaking her head and looking between Alec and Jace with a disappointed look. She doesn’t say another word, instead turning on her heels and stalking out of the room. Jace closes his eyes and nods at the two of them.

“I’ve got damage control.” Jace jokes flatly but it still causes a small smirk to come to Magnus’s face and Alec shakes his head at his brother as Jace leaves the hallway.

“Thanks.” Alec mumbles into Magnus’s hair, having pulled the warlock to his chest and holding him close to his chest. Magnus nods against Alec’s chest, leaning up to bury his face in Alec’s neck. Alec wasn’t really sure how he would deal with his parents later but right now, he’s perfectly content with just being in Magnus’s arms. Magnus always knew how to make him feel safe.

“I’m always here for you my dear.” Magnus reassures and presses a kiss to Alec’s cheek, pulling the shadowhunter towards the couch. For the time being, everything feels absolutely perfect with the world and Alec is more than willing to just spend the rest of his time with Magnus if at all possible. With Magnus, Maryse and Robert’s words couldn’t get to him and Alec knows that Magnus will always be there to take care of him with his reassuring and caring words. As long as Magnus is around, Alec feels ready to take anything on as long as the warlock is by his side.


End file.
